A Rotorua man has been sentenced to three years and seven months in prison after a Customs investigation found him possessing 143 videos “of the most extreme category of abuse” involving children.

The man, who has name suppression, was sentenced yesterday at the Rotorua District Court after being convicted on six charges at a judge-alone hearing before Judge Tony Snell in March.

The charges included five of exportation of objectionable publications and one for possession of an objectionable publication.

The summary of facts, obtained by the Rotorua Daily Post, said an investigation was launched after the US-based National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children alerted Customs to five videos uploaded to an instant messaging app, Kik. Kik had detected the uploads and reported them to the centre.

The videos, between 19 seconds and two minutes long, all showed the sexual exploitation of children.

Customs traced the man to a Rotorua address using his Kik account and executed a search warrant in 2021.

At the address, Customs officers found four mobile phones, including one Samsung with an additional SD card inside that was in a shed.

There were five videos of child sexual exploitation on the SD card. Customs’ analysis of the Samsung phone showed the man had 143 child sexual exploitation materials in his possession between December 21 2020 and January 28, 2021.

The man was arrested on-site.

According to the summary, in his formal interview, the man said he thought Kik was a “porno” application.

When asked about how some files were moved to the SD card, the man told interviewers he used to move “the good stuff” to the SD card.

Judge Snell’s sentencing notes said the defendant claimed in the court hearing that the videos had been accidentally or automatically downloaded.

The judge rejected that argument as not plausible based on evidence about how the app worked.

New Zealand Customs Service Child Exploitation Operations Team chief officer Simon Peterson said in a statement after the sentencing that he welcomed the man’s sentence.

“The man had been in possession of 143 videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, some of which were of the most extreme category of abuse,” Peterson said.

“The impact of this abuse can be devastating and have a profound, lifelong effect on the victims.”

Peterson said online child sexual exploitation represented a serious and growing form of violence against children worldwide.

“Customs combats this type of crime as a priority, but we can’t do it alone,” Peterson said.

“Close co-operation with our local partners including police, Department of Internal Affairs and international agencies is critical in preventing and disrupting this horrendous crime.”

Any publication that promotes or supports the exploitation of children for sexual purposes is deemed an objectionable publication under the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act 1993.

Charges of importing or exporting objectionable publications carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Peterson encouraged anyone with concerns or suspicions about someone who may be trading in or producing child sexual abuse images or videos to contact Customs confidentially on 0800 WE PROTECT (0800 937 768) or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

“If you are, or know of, someone who is at risk or being abused, contact the police immediately.”

Maryana Garcia is a regional reporter writing for the Rotorua Daily Post and the Bay of Plenty Times. She covers local issues, health and crime.